Write and Keep Writing

One of the things I read from different writers and bloggers about writing is that one should create a routine and stick to it. For awhile I did just that – making sure I wrote something down each day. And then life happened. Time and focus were at a premium. But…I still tried to make sure I wrote something each day. I’d love to tell you that it relaxed me and brought peace to the chaos. Instead it added to it in a way. Let me explain…

Sometimes I wrote about the thoughts in my head about the things going on. And sometimes it would refuel the fire that I thought had calmed down. Then there were days that I didn’t know what to write about so I’d try to work on more chapters of my book. It was great that I was making progress, but there were times when I got so caught up in my writing that I had to rush on other things. This caused more stress and ultimately I had to make a decision.

Writing is important to me and I enjoy it. However, I cannot sacrifice my physical and mental health for it no matter how much it means to me. What good would I be to anyone, including myself, if I’m at a severe deficient? In that state, would my writings be any good or just desperate ramblings?

Don’t get me wrong. Routines may work for most. I agree with Cana that writers write, but does the frequency make them more or less of one?

On another note, I did like Cana’s suggestion to find a writing partner. This can be a win-win for bouncing ideas off each other, proof-reading, resource on writing, and a motivator for those moments when we may be off. In addition, it’s good to have someone who loves what you love who doesn’t mind talking about the thing that you love. 🙂

How can you tell if you’re a writer or just someone who enjoys writing? A writer writes. It may sound frivolous now, of course a writer writes! But we all know those days where we’d rather do anything but write, the days where even cleaning the garage looks interesting. That’s fine. Every writer I know has bad writing days. What really separates a writer and someone who likes writing is the will to pick yourself back up again.

Here are my tips for how to write and keep writing.

Establish a Routine

Whenever I feel like I’m not writing enough, I establish a routine. Writing consistently works wonders. If you write every single day, the quality of your work grows, you’re writing every day, and over time it becomes weird not to write regularly, which is a great position to be in! The best part is that it’s not even…